Текст книги "Quest for the Faradawn"

Автор книги: Richard Ford

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‘And with the destruction of Ammdar, I, the Lord Wychnor, was appointed by Ashgaroth to become Lord of the Forests and the Green Growing Things.

‘And thus it is that in the Shadow of Dréagg dwells the Earth. The Elves and the Animals cried out to Ashgaroth that they had been abandoned, for truly they were powerless against the Elrondin of Pure Logic. And they beseeched Ashgaroth that he might help them. And he answered them and said, “Be patient” for it was as he had said, truly Logic was the most dangerous of the Elrondin and in Man it had been used with no regard for its power and was pure and undilute so that in it are the seeds of self-destruction.

‘And Ashgaroth further promised them that when the time was right and the stars in the heavens were in their true place then would he send a Saviour who was truly of the Duain Elrondin, so that in him lay both Magic and Logic and to this Saviour he would show the way and through him would they be saved.

‘And the Tale of his Coming is even as has happened; he would be born of two of the Eldron so that he would be possessed of Logic yet would his spirit come from Ashgaroth so that he would have Magic. And in him would the influence of Dréagg not exist so that he would be afflicted by neither cruelty nor arrogance. And he would be raised among the animals to be with them and to be of them.

‘And so it is, Nab, that we believe you to be this Saviour and I, Wychnor, as the Elflord who dwelt nearest to you, have watched over you since the day your parents, the Chosen Eldron, left you in the snow.

‘But you must travel to meet the two other Elflords so that they may recognize and know you. They dwell in other Nations across the seas but they will journey here and meet you in a part of their Kingdom which is in this Nation.

‘So the Lord Saurelon will meet you by the sea where it thunders and rages in the westernmost part of this nation in a place I shall direct you to and then you will journey to meet the Lord Malcoff in a high place amongst the towering mountains which border our nation in the far north.

‘And Ashgaroth has directed that from each of the Elflords will you be given a small casket within which will be found the essence, The Grain, of their Kingdom, called the Faradawn, and when you have these three, then will the Mighty Ashgaroth reveal to you alone what is the Way.

‘You will travel by the Old Ways, the Secret Pathways which only the Elves and the animals know but which you also with your powers of Magic may now know. And you will not be alone as you journey for with you will be your companions of Silver Wood; Perryfoot the Fleet and the dog Sam, you, Brock and you, Warrigal.

‘And there will be a sixth traveller, known to you now as an Urkku but in fact one of the Eldron; the girl you met by the stream. She will be a friend of your own race and you will learn much from her, as you travel, of the ways of Man.

‘When you leave here you will journey to where she lives. She will be waiting, for Ashgaroth has touched her mind as she slept to prepare her for your coming. And so that she may know you for the one sent by him, you will give her a Ring.’

He stopped talking and there was silence for a long, long time as the three travellers continued to look at him, their minds racing furiously with all that they had heard. He sat in the windowseat, looking gently at them, framed by the light of the early moon, for the sun had now gone down. Nab wished that he could sit here for ever, listening to that voice, and remain secure in this little room. Somehow he was afraid to leave, for while he was in the room he retained some part of him as he had been before he entered; when he left, he would be in some way different. He felt as if before he had been safe; wrapped in a cocoon of ignorance, but that now the world was a different place and his role in it frightened him terribly: from being a mere bystander watching from the outside, he was now at the centre. He looked at Brock and Warrigal and found that they were looking at him and he wondered if their attitude towards him would change.

For the badger and the owl, in fact, the Elflord’s words as to the place of Nab amongst them had been no surprise, rather a confirma-tion of something which they had felt from the night he had arrived in the wood. What their minds were trying desperately to cope with was the wealth of knowledge which they had just been given and the incredible story behind it. Brock soon gave up, his mind submerged under it all, but for Warrigal it was like the completion of a puzzle as all the little fragments of stories and legends that he had picked up over the years finally came together as one.

The Elflord’s voice broke in upon their thoughts.

‘You will dine with me tonight, as my guests,’ he said, ‘and tomorrow before you leave I will present you with the Ring and the casket of the Faradawn. Come with me.’

He stood up and beckoned to them to follow him as he walked back across the little room and opened the door into the hall. As they emerged into the vastness of the huge chamber a wonderful sight met their eyes. Down the centre stretched a long mat woven with rushes of greens and browns and interlaced with fronds of fir, and on the mat, which stretched almost to the far end, was a vast selection of foods and drinks all arranged in little silver and copper dishes, each one carved with a different pattern and each illustrating a part of the story which they had just heard. The Lord Wychnor led them across to the head of the mat, where he sat down on a brilliantly coloured cushion and motioned to Nab to sit on his left with Warrigal and Brock on his right. When these four were sitting, the host of elves who had been standing alongside the mat also sat down and all turned towards Wychnor, who stood up, raised the silver chalice which was in front of him and turned to Nab looking deep into his eyes. Then he drank from the chalice and the elves all cheered and likewise raised their bowls and drank. When Brock leant forward to take a sip from his bowl, which he guessed he was supposed to, he saw with a thrill that around the outside of the bowl was carved a delicate picture of a badger moving backwards through a snow filled wood with a bundle nestled under his two forelegs. He looked excitedly at the other bowls around him and saw that they too represented different scenes from his life with Nab; a carving of the sett with him and Tara playing with Nab, the first Council Meeting, and others, all bringing back warm and satisfying memories. He looked across at Nab and then turned to Warrigal and they too were looking in wonder at their silver bowls, lost in thought. The boy raised his head and looked back at Brock and a tear oozed from his eye and trickled slowly down his cheek until it fell on the mat. Then the Elflord sat down, the cheering stopped and everyone began to eat and drink.

‘Do you like them?’ said Wychnor, pointing to the carvings and speaking to the three companions. ‘Our craftsmen were finishing them even as you were walking past them this afternoon to meet me. See, here is one of the three of you walking through Ellmondrill and here is another of you coming across the water with Reev. Ah, here is some music and the dancers. This will be a new dance, performed in honour of you all; even I have not seen it before.’

The great door at the end of the hall had opened and a stream of elves were dancing in, some carrying instruments from which came the sounds of music and others clad in costumes from which hundreds of little lights shimmered and sparkled in the orange twilight glow that shone from the patches of lichen on the walls. The owl, the badger and the boy watched in wonder as the musicians settled down around the outside walls and began to play and the dancers moved in time with the rhythms, echoing in their movements the memories and timeless images which the music evoked in their minds. Nab recognized little snatches of sound from the walk through the hall that afternoon when they had been practising and, as these more familiar sounds came to him, he once again felt the impulsive urge to dance. He watched the dancers as they moved around the hall and their costumes formed a dizzy whirlpool of colours in which he became lost, and then dimly, through the haze of sounds and lights, he felt himself get up from his cushion by the mat and dance across to join them. Once he was up and had given himself to the music his body seemed taken over; he seemed to fly through the air up to the rafters, which were festooned with evergreens, across to the far wall and then down to crouch on the floor in a tiny ball only to explode again into separate pieces each of which flew away to different parts of the hall.

Brock and Warrigal watched in amazement and the elves cheered and laughed and soon the cushions around the mat were vacant as the floor was filled with dancers, each joyously lost in his own world of movement. The badger and the owl sought out Nab and the three of them frolicked and spun and laughed and leapt until they could move no more and then when the moon was highest in the night sky the visitors returned weary and happy to their little room below, and the elves all retired to sleep. All except Wychnor, who went to his private room and sat alone staring out through the window at the moon shining on the clearing; and his mind was lost in the past.

The next morning the animals were woken by Reev as he came into their chamber, bringing, as he called it, their ‘travelling food’ on a large tray. The sun shone very brightly through the window and they knew what that brightness meant; snow had fallen in the night. They went over to look outside and could hardly recognize the clearing, covered as it was by a thick layer of white, making everything round and smooth and soft. The elf stayed with them as they ate, talking about last night; he had been one of the dancers but none of the animals had recognized him in his costume. Indeed, in the myriad of wonders that had so mesmerized them, they could remember very little, but when they thought back to their talk with Wychnor a little cold chill sent itself shuddering into their hearts at the recollection of his words. In the magic of last night they had been able to forget, but now, in the cold light of a new day, the things he had told them came flooding back in a rush so that they no longer felt hungry.

‘You must eat; finish your food. You need all your strength for the times ahead,’ said Reev in a quiet comforting way. ‘When you have finished I will take you once again to the Lord Wychnor and then you shall leave us.’

When they had eaten their fill, Reev led them back along the winding corridors of the Elvenoak and through the hall, empty now and very different from the way it had been last night, until they arrived once again outside the door of Wychnor’s little room. Reev pulled a cord and the Elflord opened it and bade them welcome, closing the door behind them as Reev walked away.

‘There are things I must give to you,’ he said, ‘and words I must say. Here, Nab, is the Belt of Ammdar, which he used to keep the three seeds of logic safe; you will see it is woven of young willow saplings and interlaced among them are three silver lockets. I have placed the Faradawn of the trees and the green growing things in the one furthest away from the fastening. It is good that the belt should now be used to help defeat the evil that Ammdar brought upon the world. Wear it as he did; close to your body under your garments.’ Nab looked at the wide belt with amazement and fear; the idea of wearing this belt, which had been worn by and belonged to the dread and mighty Ammdar, the fallen Elflord, was not one that appealed to him. He looked at Wychnor, who knew what the boy was thinking.

‘Take it,’ he said. ‘It will help you on the side of Ashgaroth even as it helped Ammdar in the cause of Dréagg.’

The Elflord passed the belt over and Nab received it with trembling hands. Despite its width and the three silver lockets which he could now see clearly embedded amongst the green sapling strands, it was amazingly light; in fact, if he hadn’t seen it lying in his hands, he would not have known he was holding it. He looked at it in wonder, and Brock and Warrigal crowded around to gaze at this fragment of living legend, reaching out cautiously to touch it to make sure it wasn’t just a figment of their imagination.

‘The Belt of Ammdar,’ intoned the owl under his breath, as if reciting a magic spell.

Finally, when Nab had managed to pluck up courage, he lifted his clothing and placed the belt over the multi-coloured shawl that lay always next to his skin. Then he brought together the delicately carved copper fastenings and found to his surprise that, when they came close to each other, they seemed to spring shut of their own accord. It fitted him perfectly and felt strangely comforting fastened securely around his waist.

‘Here is the Ring which you are to give to the chosen lady of the Eldron,’ said Wychnor. ‘Put it for safe keeping in one of the lockets.’

The Ring was a deep translucent gold colour with threads of silver inlaid inside it, so that they appeared as wisps of mist on an autumn morning. In the top was set a silver jewel, the base of which was buried deep within and it shone through the gold with a light that lit up the whole ring. As he handled it Nab became aware of a vague scent of pine and, when he mentioned this to Warrigal later, the owl said he believed that the gold was resin from the pine trees that had existed first upon the earth and which the elves used to mine when these trees had long since died and become part of the ground. How the silver threads were put inside he was unable to say. As Nab looked at the ring he thought he saw them moving, as the mist does in a gentle breeze, and the golden light seemed to wax and wane as if the sun were reaching midday and sinking to evening.

Wychnor showed the boy how to open one of the lockets by pressing a catch at the back which caused the top to fly open and Nab then dropped the Ring inside before pushing the top down again so that it clicked shut. Nab then rearranged his top garments so that the belt, with its precious contents, was hidden and looked up to see the Elflord’s great grey eyes fixed upon the three of them.

‘And now it is farewell. Reev will travel with you back through Ellmondrill and he will take you to the dwelling of the Eldron. There he will leave you and you will return with her to Silver Wood to collect Perryfoot and Sam. Then you will start your journey. The reasons for your going and the matters I have disclosed to you must be kept secret, although of course the members of the Council know already: Dréagg is now, after your capture by the Urkku, aware of your existence, Nab, although not yet aware of your significance. Beware, then, for he will be watching and when he thinks the time is right he will strike: the minute he learns the purpose of your journey he will act but, in ignorance of it, he will wait and try and learn by following your travels. Take the utmost care therefore not to be seen by the Urkku, for they are the eyes and ears of Dréagg. Keep to the secret paths and the ancient places which you will know from the magic in your bodies.’ He paused and they waited as he turned to look out of the window for a second before turning back and addressing them once again.

‘There is one final matter,’ he said. ‘I have told you that the seeds of logic that were used in the creation of the Urkku contain the means of self-destruction. Thus it is that the world of Urkku, and with it our world, the world of the jewel of Ashgaroth, is drawing to an end. Your task must be accomplished before that happens otherwise we shall all perish with it; yet even now it is rumoured that there is great trouble amongst the Urkku and that their fragile world is breaking down. Do not unduly delay therefore. Be steady and sure in your purpose and as swift as caution permits. Now, farewell; may the light of Ashgaroth go with you.’

They turned around slowly and with an immense sadness in their hearts followed Reev as he led them out through the hall and down through the Elvenoak, until they once more found themselves gliding back over the water, doubly black now in contrast with the snow all about them on the ground and in the trees. On the far bank they alighted and made straight for the gap in the wall of trees through which they had come. They paused before they entered the tunnel and looked back at the clearing, standing serene and peaceful, glistening white under the blue sky. There was no sign of movement anywhere and no sound of activity; were it not for Reev standing waiting for them, his green and brown doublet blowing gently in the breeze that came across the water, and the belt which Nab could feel as he walked, the whole episode could have been a dream. Then they looked away and were soon on the far side of the tunnel and walking once again amongst the enormous trees and deep undergrowth of the wood. The going was more difficult now with the snow covering everything and Nab and Brock found themselves frequently falling through a pile of bracken or a small bush although Reev seemed to dance on top as if he weighed no more than a feather and Warrigal had once again taken to the air and was swooping and gliding ahead of them with obvious enjoyment at being back in his element.

Nab did not recognize any of the areas through which Reev led them; in fact the whole wood seemed different – the trees not quite so enormous and the atmosphere more friendly. The owl and the elf were constantly having to wait while the others caught up and Nab would see them ahead in a clearing, bathed in the shafts of sunlight that came lancing through the trees as he and Brock plodded through the snow towards them. The sun was thawing it and every now and again the branches of a tree would shed its load with no warning, and the wood echoed with the crashing noise it made as it fell down through all the lower branches bringing the snow on those tumbling down as well; then there would be utter stillness once again, broken only by the panting of the boy and the badger who were now warm with the effort of walking through the snow.

Finally they reached the stream and they rested for a while just inside the wood and looked out at the white fields on the other side rising up gently to the corridor-like path through which they had come just two days ago, although it seemed an age. The stream, swollen now with the melting snow, rushed on its way, gurgling and spluttering past them, knocking folds of snow off the banks as it went which seemed to struggle bravely for an instant to remain white and whole but then sank beneath the black waters as they rapidly dissolved. The midday sun was at its height, shining down on the snow and filling their world with silver light. Reev produced a selection of nuts, toadstools and berries from a little pouch which he wore on his belt and gratefully the animals munched on these as they sat. Nab began to think of where they were going and he realized that until now his mind had been so busy with everything that had been happening around them that he had given very little thought to this part of the Elflord’s revelations, and the full impact of it now slowly began to dawn on him. They were travelling, right at this very moment, to meet the Urkku girl whom he had seen three summers ago and whom he had never really forgotten; and she was, according to Wychnor, a part of his life and would share his journeys with him, although what was to happen to them then not even the Elflord knew. The more he thought about it the more excited he became and he found himself longing to see her again; he thought of how he had last seen her, standing waving to him from the banks of the stream, her red dress and long golden hair ruffling in the springtime afternoon breeze and in her hand the posy of yellow primroses and pink campion she had picked for her mother. All the wonder and magic of that day came flooding back to him in a rush of exhilaration, but with it came the doubts, the anxieties and the fears which had also been a part of it and he felt himself getting nervous again. It was impossible to believe that she would simply leave her home and her parents and her friends and go with him on a journey to places even he had never been to before; and then it occurred to him, with a sharp stab of panic, that he would not even be able to tell her where or why they were going because she did not speak the language of the wood.

Suddenly his gloomy thoughts were broken into by Reev who was sitting next to him and had guessed from the intense look on Nab’s face and from the intuition that comes with magic what was going through the boy’s head.

‘Have faith in the powers of Ashgaroth and remember, she is of the Eldron,’ he said, ‘and you have the Ring.’

Nab turned to look at him and the elf smiled warmly so that all the boy’s fears seemed to vanish.

‘Come,’ said Reev. ‘It is time we made a move.’

They got up feeling greatly refreshed and walked the few paces to the bank; to the animals’ surprise they had come out exactly where the fallen log formed the bridge from which Brock had fallen when they came across the other way. This time there were no incidents except for the amazing way in which Reev appeared to jump over the stream; one minute he was in the wood and the next he was on the far bank waiting for the animals to cross and grinning broadly. The strange thing was that they had not actually seen him in the air as he jumped.

Soon they were walking briskly up the slope towards the entrance to the two thorn hedges that formed the corridor and then they were walking along inside it once again, leaving Ellmondrill glimmering majestically in the sun. The rest of the walk back took place in silence; each of the animals buried deep inside the comforting cocoon of his own mind, letting little fragments of what the Elflord had told them enter their thoughts one at a time to be thoroughly absorbed and digested before the next piece was allowed to enter and be, in turn, mulled over and put in its place. Now that they were away from Ellmondrill and walking back towards familiar territory they felt more confident and more in control of their own destiny, and this gradual sifting and sorting out of all the new things they had learnt and experienced allowed them to understand things that before had buried them beneath a deluge of bewilderment. For Nab and Warrigal, understanding was easier than it was for Brock, who found much of Wychnor’s tale confusing and vague, but he understood above all that he had been right in the feelings of destiny which he had experienced from the first time he had set eyes on Nab although he also realized that he would be leaving Silver Wood and Tara for a long time. When he had questioned Reev about this, the elf had replied that any more than six animals travelling together would be far too conspicuous to the Urkku; six itself was really too many but Wychnor felt that the advantages in terms of safety of the combined skills of all those who were going outweighed the disadvantages. Besides, Reev had added, Tara was not as strong as were the rest of them; the strain of bearing cubs had left its mark on her. Then Brock had understood why, but it had not helped to ease the pain he felt at the thought of being parted from her.

Eventually by the time the sun was beginning to sink on the short winter afternoon they arrived back in the fields which led, over the rise, to the back of Silver Wood and they could just make out the tops of the trees in the distance. Reev called them to a halt and told them that they were now about to make directly for the home of the Eldron and that therefore rather than go through the wood it was quicker to take a path to the right of it. At the sight of the familiar trees and hummocks the animals were filled with pangs of homesickness but, comforting themselves with the thought that they would be back once they had collected the girl, they steeled themselves and followed the elf as he headed away across the fields at an angle that took them, once again, away from the wood.

It was evening by the time Reev stopped again. They were just under the summit of a small rise in a field.

‘The dwelling of the Eldron is on the other side of the hill,’ he said. ‘I will leave you now; you have no further need of me. When you leave Silver Wood with the girl, take the way that leads towards that copse of fir trees in the distance; that will set you on the right path. Farewell.’

He was gone before the animals had a chance to say goodbye; the silver light that glowed about him dancing off into the darkness of the evening until it vanished on the far side of a hedge. Their last link with the wood elves had gone and they were on their own again.

‘Come on,’ said Nab, and they crunched their way over the frozen snow until they reached the top of the rise. They looked down and there, nestling in the fold between two little hills, stood a small cottage. The hill they were standing on was at the rear of the cottage and in front was a thick wood. Light shone from three of the downstairs windows; from two of them the light was a warm orange colour and from the third, at one end, it was tinged with a flicker of red. Smoke drifted straight upwards in the stillness from a chimney at this end and the smell of woodsmoke hung heavily in the chill air, reminding the animals of autumn. Nab looked around him at the steely grey evening sky, the white frozen fields and the wood which lay dark and forbidding under the first stars. For an instant he was consumed by an inexplicable longing to be inside the cottage, warm and secure and locked away from the cold of the night. It came from somewhere deep within him and passed as quickly as it came but the yearning was so intense that whenever he thought of it afterwards a great sadness welled up inside him.

They walked quietly down the slope towards the cottage and were soon scrambling through a rough wooden fence that separated the field from a garden at the back. This back garden was only small and there were some trees forming a border round it which were so close together that they formed a tall hedge. The animals gathered under it to work out what they were to do.

‘I think it would be better if I approached alone,’ whispered Nab. ‘She might be scared if she saw all three of us together at first; after all, she has seen me before.’

Warrigal and Brock agreed; the owl flew up into one of the trees, where he perched on a branch from which he had a good view of the whole of the back of the house, and the badger melted back into the shadows, watchful and tense, ready to dash out and render help the instant it might be needed. To his surprise he realized that he was quite enjoying himself; there was not too much danger, he didn’t think, but what there was took his mind off the future and enabled him to live for the moment for a while. These sorts of adventures were the kind he was used to from the times before Nab had come and he felt more in control of himself than he had for quite a time. He settled down, under the overhanging branches of one of the trees, right back against its trunk and, looking out, saw that Nab had reached the end of the hedge of trees and had started to creep along the wall of the cottage towards the first of the windows. The last of the evening light had almost gone and the night was nearly upon them; against the darkening sky the badger saw a lone rook flying home and suddenly he was filled with a wish for the old days when he would have been emerging at about this time for his evening walk. Now all that had changed; their lives had been taken over by the hands of destiny.